New Delhi, 17 August (H.S.): Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has written to Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, urging him to personally meet representatives of students protesting in the state. He said that engaging directly with the students to address their remaining concerns would reinforce the government’s commitment to resolving the issues.

In his letter to Soren on Monday, Rahul Gandhi said the right to peaceful protest is enshrined in the Constitution and is one of the fundamental pillars of a democracy. He noted that reports of paper leaks and irregularities in the country’s education system had emerged over the past several months. He said he believed the education system was increasingly being turned into a means of exploitation and harassment of students, rather than serving as a system of knowledge and learning as it had a decade ago.

Rahul Gandhi said students in Jharkhand were protesting against alleged irregularities in the state’s recruitment examinations. He noted that the protests had remained peaceful and that the students were seeking to raise their demands through democratic means.

In his letter, he said he was aware that the state government had held discussions with the students and that agreement had also been reached on several of their demands. However, he pointed out that the protest was still continuing and that some students had also begun an indefinite hunger strike.

Rahul Gandhi urged Chief Minister Hemant Soren to personally meet the representatives of the protesting students. He said such a meeting would further strengthen the government’s commitment to addressing the students’ remaining concerns.

He said in the letter that the youth of India are the country’s future. Expressing solidarity and support for the students amid the ongoing crisis, Rahul Gandhi urged the Chief Minister to listen to their concerns and take appropriate steps towards resolving their grievances.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar